MP 1,1-5,1 16 years with Mac Pro. Ordered a Studio. Feeling Nostalgic.

[Mac Gus]

I bought my 2009 4,1 Mac Pro new in 2009 to edit a feature length film. Since then I have been using it for photo and video editing with Lightroom and Final Cut. Have updated the firmware, the CPUs twice, multiple different GPUs, PCIe SSD, different RAM configurations, USBC, and had to replace the PSU once. But this machine just keeps going and can still edit 4k video footage and work with large DNG photo files. I've always had it paired with the 2008 Mac display and it still looks great. The only issue that I have with this computer is that it is running Mojave and its starting to feel dated. Basic web browsing is becoming glitchy. Sometimes I worry the PSU will go out again. It also uses a lot of energy and the new Macs are much more efficient. I know it's time to finally upgrade.

This week I ordered my first Mac desktop in 16 years, a M4 Max Mac Studio. I know that the Studio will be way more capable than the 2009 Pro. But I am going to miss the upgradeability of the Pro. It was fun to be able to operate on the Mac Pro and put stronger CPUs in it as they came available as well as storage, GPU, RAM, USBC, etc. The ability to upgrade my Mac made it feel more personable. My workload wouldn't justify a new Mac Pro model even if there was a M4 variant available. The Studio is more than capable for my needs, but I'm going to miss the modularity of the Mac Pro and the ability to expand and upgrade. Computing has changed since 2009.

I don't even know what to do with my 2009 when the Studio arrives. I really have no use for two desktops, but I have a sentimental attachment to it! I'm definitely keeping my wired keyboard though.

 

[SierraVista]

I don't even know what to do with my 2009 when the Studio arrives.

Pull out the guts and put the Studio inside it, and run the cables out through the back!

But you do make a good point indeed. There is definitely a satisfaction associated with DIY: diagnosing and replacing a bad DIMM or failing HDD, none of which is now possible on most new Macs. This has even been studied by psychologists and is called the IKEA effect! This kind of tinkering is what led me, and I am sure many others, to a career in IT.

 

[MoonCakeTropics]

There was such a 'coziness' of the original mac pro. It was still part of the jobs era, but also somehow reached back to the Power Mac era.

Frankly I find the current apple soulless. Rudderless. There are very few great "app" makers like there were for apple when its market was much smaller. Even the websites are all dead, and the ones that are not, are completely boring and not interesting.

I frankly find the retro computing scene far more technically competent, advanced, and interesting than apple's current offerings. I still get the current things as I need them for work. But the soul of the computers and the scene has gone dim. And I'm afraid there is no steve jobs to come back and reignite things.

I totally feel your nostalgia and clink my beer in a toast with you to far more interesting times that we have shared in the road behind us.

 

[Regulus67]

I don't even know what to do with my 2009 when the Studio arrives. I really have no use for two desktops, but I have a sentimental attachment to it! I'm definitely keeping my wired keyboard though.

The old Mac Pro can be used as a server and backup machine. Plus it has the DVD writer, which later macs do not have.

It might not be useful every day, but I still have my Mac Pro 3,1 (2008). And I always use it to rip music CDs, or Vinyl LPs.

 

[krakman]

The only issue that I have with this computer is that it is running Mojave and its starting to feel dated.

use OCLP and update to Monterey. And if you really want to risk it you can run Sequoia too!

 

[Mac Gus]

use OCLP and update to Monterey. And if you really want to risk it you can run Sequoia too!

Can you direct me to what OCLP is and the process for putting this on my Mac Pro? I haven't been following the update scene for cMPs for several years. Also, I bought a new 27 Apple Studio Display. Would I be able to run my 2009 Pro on that off of the Radeon RX 580, or do I have to keep my old monitor? Thanks.

 

[theluggage]

The old Mac Pro can be used as a server and backup machine. Plus it has the DVD writer, which later macs do not have.

What's the idle power draw on a Mac Pro of that era? It will certanly suck 10x the power of a Mac Mini or a modern ARM-driven NAS when it is busy - and while it should throttle back when idle I don't think 2009 chippery was anything like as efficient as modern stuff.

Not sure that using an old MP as a server is particularly energy-efficient - in a time when electricity is expensive.

Things pass. However, computers from the 00s and early 10s have had a fairly good useful life compared with stuff from the 90s that were "retro" 2 years after release...

 

[Regulus67]

Not sure that using an old MP as a server is particularly energy-efficient - in a time when electricity is expensive.

It can not compare to Apple's new M-series. But it is not all about power efficiency.
The Mac Pro has 4 HD slots. So it has far superior storage capacity. And Apple storage is crazy expensive now.
So how many years will the old Mac Pro run before the purchase price of M-series mac evens out?
The M4 Max Mac Studio is extremely power efficient. So it could be a great combination.

My argument is based on the user already owning said old Mac Pro, not someone purchasing one to use as a server.

 

[dannyseek]

Can you direct me to what OCLP is and the process for putting this on my Mac Pro? I haven't been following the update scene for cMPs for several years. Also, I bought a new 27 Apple Studio Display. Would I be able to run my 2009 Pro on that off of the Radeon RX 580, or do I have to keep my old monitor? Thanks.

OCLP stands for OpenCore Legacy Patcher. Others may be able to explain it better, but it is essentially open source software maintained by a very passionate community of developers (and users who often times volunteer to test things) which allows Macs to upgrade to unsupported versions of OS X (or is it MacOS?? dating myself here 😅). A quick Google search for Open Core Legacy Patcher will bring you to their website which has an excellent guide on how to proceed.

I have a 5,1 as well, currently on Monterey. I have a Studio Display connected to it via (DisplayPort + USB) to USB C cable. I took me a couple of cables to find the one that worked perfectly (Studio Display is very finicky about cables) but being able to use the Studio Display brings the 5,1 to the modern era, the "retina" era. My 5,1 works great. Like you, I have upgraded just about everything, usbc, bluetooth/wifi card to enable air drop, pcie ssd, processors, I even replaced a couple of fans with Noctua fans (those brown fans that are very well known in the PC scene). In terms of OS, I know I could go up to Sequoia using OCLP, however at this time my gpu (Radeon RX5700) is not supported, but I know the RX580 is. You should give it a try, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

 

[dannyseek]

Pull out the guts and put the Studio inside it, and run the cables out through the back!

But you do make a good point indeed. There is definitely a satisfaction associated with DIY: diagnosing and replacing a bad DIMM or failing HDD, none of which is now possible on most new Macs. This has even been studied by psychologists and is called the IKEA effect! This kind of tinkering is what led me, and I am sure many others, to a career in IT.

Fascinating! I didn't know there was a name for it. I've definitely experienced this. A couple of years back I bought a 2001 Land Rover Discovery for not much money. I always liked tinkering (be it cars or computers) but the Disco was baptism by fire 😅. It took me a couple of months of fixing and upgrading things just so I could clear all the engine codes to get it to pass smog tests and get it registered. The more I worked on it the more attached I became to it. I love the thing. It is the same with my 5,1. I've done everything to it. I recently paired it with a Studio Display which brought it to the modern era. I just wished the good people working on the OCLP project could come up with a fix so that my gpu (RX5700) can be used with Sequoia. That would give the 5,1 a few more years of faithful service. I seriously doubt we'll ever see another machine last as long as these workhorses have.

 

[MarkC426]

What's the idle power draw on a Mac Pro of that era?

In a nutshell…..my cMP at idle uses about the same power as my Studio at max power.

Like others here, I use my cMP to record vinyl (long ongoing task) with a USB turntable.
Plus I ‘detest’ the Music app.
iTunes is FAR superior, so my cMP is kept active for my library of Music/TV/Films.

 

[Mac Gus]

OCLP stands for OpenCore Legacy Patcher. Others may be able to explain it better, but it is essentially open source software maintained by a very passionate community of developers (and users who often times volunteer to test things) which allows Macs to upgrade to unsupported versions of OS X (or is it MacOS?? dating myself here 😅). A quick Google search for Open Core Legacy Patcher will bring you to their website which has an excellent guide on how to proceed.

I have a 5,1 as well, currently on Monterey. I have a Studio Display connected to it via (DisplayPort + USB) to USB C cable. I took me a couple of cables to find the one that worked perfectly (Studio Display is very finicky about cables) but being able to use the Studio Display brings the 5,1 to the modern era, the "retina" era. My 5,1 works great. Like you, I have upgraded just about everything, usbc, bluetooth/wifi card to enable air drop, pcie ssd, processors, I even replaced a couple of fans with Noctua fans (those brown fans that are very well known in the PC scene). In terms of OS, I know I could go up to Sequoia using OCLP, however at this time my gpu (Radeon RX5700) is not supported, but I know the RX580 is. You should give it a try, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

I'm going to look into it. I've been setting up my M4Max Studio over the past couple of days and moving over to TB5 storage options. I might try upgrading the cMP as a hobby computer. It would be way more convenient if it could somehow drive my new ACD monitor, otherwise I have to keep my 2008 24" Cinema Display around in order to work on the cMP and lug it out and set it up every time I want to get on the cMP.